A 36-year-old-male was admitted complaining of headache, right sided weakness and numbness of upper and lower extremity, and multiple cranial nerve deficits. Cranial magnetic resonance imaging revealed an abscess in the pontomesencephalic junction. Patient was then diagnosed to have Human Immunodeficiency Virus with a CD 4 count of 32 cells/ uL, his CSF assay was positive for Toxoplasmosis IgG and was managed as a case of probable brainstem toxoplasmosis. Patient was treated with Co-Trimoxazole 800/160mg 2 tablets twice a day. Upon discharge the patient clinically improved and was tolerating oral feeding. A repeat cranial magnetic resonance imaging after 6 weeks of antibiotic treatment revealed a decrease of size in the previous lesion. To our knowledge, there are no reported cases in the Philippines that shows the documentation of CNS toxoplasmosis in the brainstem. In this paper, a case of CNS toxoplasmosis in the pons of a newly diagnosed HIV patient is presented and how its course led to a good outcome.
Toxoplasmosis ; Immunocompromised Host

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus (COVID-19) is a recently discovered disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome COV2 virus (SARS COV-2) that led to a global pandemic. COVID-19, with its rapid spread, proved to be a global threat to health. Although it is known to mainly cause respiratory symptoms, neurologic sequelae have also been reported in a growing number of patients. OBJECTIVES: This study aims to provide additional evidence regarding neuro-radiographic findings among Filipino patients inflicted with COVID-19. METHODOLOGY: This paper is an analytical, retrospective study of COVID-19 confirmed patients who presented with neurologic manifestation and underwent cranial CT scans between April 2020 and April 2021 at Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center. RESULTS: A total of 22 patients were included in the study. Of these, 11 had acute infarcts, 5 had cerebral hemorrhage, 1 had cerebral venous thrombosis, and 5 had normal imaging findings. Fisher's test was done and revealed a significant difference between COVID-19 severity and abnormal CT scan findings. CONCLUSION Although relatively uncommon, the study showed that there is an increased incidence of abnormal neuroimaging findings among patients with COVID-19. The most common of which is cerebral infarction followed by macrohemorrhages. The severity of the disease is correlated with the increased incidence of abnormal neuroimaging findings among COVID-19 patients.
Neuroimaging

We describe a 52-year old woman who developed one- and-a-half syndrome with an ipsilateral trigeminal and facial nerve palsy from a lacunar infarct of the left paramedian pontine area likely involving the median-paramedian perforators of the basilar artery.
Stroke, Lacunar ; Brain Stem